Cash-check holder and cutter.



No. 722,234. PATENTED MAR. 10, 1903. A. D. JOSLIN.

CASH CHECK HOLDER AND CUTTER. APPLIGATION FILED Nov. 1, 1901,

A TTORNEXJ ma Nonms Evans :nl Pnomuwo., warmenw, u` c.

ALEXANDER D. JOSLIN,

OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CASH=CHECK HOLDER AND CUTTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 722,234, dated March10, 1903.

Application led November 1, 1901. Serial No. 80.751. (No model.)

T0 all 1071.011?, it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALEXANDER D. J osmn, a citizen of the United States,residing in Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois,haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in Cash-Check Holders and Cutters,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in holders for cash-checks,tickets, dto., for the use of railway conductors, and is a modificationof and in some respects an improvement upon the construction of suchdevices shown in the patent to me, No. 467,936, dated February 2, 1892.

The main object of the invention has been to simplify, cheapen, andotherwise improve the construction.

In the accompanying drawings I show at Figure l a plan of my improvedholder; at Fig. 2, a plan of the cheek with which. the holder is adaptedto be used; at Figs. 3 and el, end and side elevations, respectively, ofthe holder; at Fig. 5, a vertical cross-section of the severing-blade,showing also the perfo rating device for indicating the amount paid andthe perforating device for indicating the date; and at Fig. 6 aperspective, partly in section, of a portion of the holder.

The check which I prefer to use in the holder is fully shown at Figs. 1and 2 and consists of the check proper or voucher slip X, which afterthe cheek has been severed by the conductor is delivered by him lto thepassenger, and the stub Y, which is returned by the conductor to theauditor or other proper officer of the railroad. The slip and stub areintegral when placed in the holder,

and the line upon which they are separatedby the conductor is shown atZ.

The holder is much like that of my said patent--that is to say, itembodies a suitable box or inclosing frame 7, whereina pile of thechecks may be inclosed sufficiently to protect them while the holder isin the conductors pocket.

S is the severing blade or edge along which the checks are torn andserving also as a means of retaining the checks in the box 7. Springs 9,one at each end of the blade, press on it and insure pressure on thetickets at all times. These springs are entirely independent oi' eachother and their construction is best shown at Fig. 6. They are formed ofwire doubled upon itself into U form and attached to the box by buttons10, located at the corners of the box and entered in the crotch of thesprings. The springs are practically alike, and the ends of the lowerlimbs or members thereof and which bear ou the blade are passed throughtransverse slots 11, formed in the ends of the blade. These ends of thesprings are `given several bends, as shown, one of which, the lateralbend 12, is intended to set under the blade and prevent it from slidingon the spring when the pressure of the spring is released and the bladeraised from its normal position to permit the removal of the body ofchecks or the insertion `of a fresh supply. The laterally-bent point 13is the part which bears on the severingblade, and it is connected to thebend 12 by the vertical part 14. The springs are inserted in thetransverse slots by turning the former from normal positionssufficiently to bring the points 13 parallel with the slots andreturning them to normal positions after the points have been passedthrough the slots. The ends of the upper limbs or members of the springsare also bent, as shown at Fig. 6- that is to say, a portion of thespring is offset, as at 15, and the point 16 is left standing at rightangles to the body of the spring, so as to adapt it to be entered in theopening 17 in the end wall of the box. This end of the spring isslightly deiiected by preference, so as to allow the point 16 to beentered in said opening 17 from the inside of the box and be heldtherein with suicient power to prevent the point from accidentallyslipping out. The offset 15 gives room to the upstanding portion of thebox iu which the opening 17 is made and allows the engagement of point16 Without increasing its length, as would otherwise be necessary, andalso keeps the upper member of the spring from interfering with thechecks. The buttons not only hold the springs to the box, but when theblade is raised to put in or remove the checks they serve as pivots onwhich the blade may be swung.

Several sliding perforating devices for indicating the amount ofdollars, dimes, cents, and excess paid by the passenger are shown. Theyare each formed in one piece of fiat spring metal and bent into the formshown at IOO VIO

Fig. 5 and inserted in the long slot 18 in the severing-blade. The longhorizontally-projecting ends 19 are pointed to enable them to perforatethe checks, and the balance of the metal is bent upward and looped overso as to form handles 19"', by which the devices may be slid along theslot 18, and the other ends 2O press against the beveled side of theslot 18 and cause friction between the walls of the slot and theperforating devices suficient to insure their remaining stationary whileperforating. The bevel side of the slot and the points 19 prevent thedevices from jumping out of the slot, but do not prevent their removalby squeezing the handle, so as to carry end 20 away from the bevel sideof the slot. The points 19 project over the series of figures printed onthe check at 22, 23, 24, and 25, arranged along and parallel with thesevering-line Z, and, as Will be understood, when positioned over anyfigure they prevent that gure from being severed with the rest of thefigures from the voucher-slip, and at the same time they form a notch inthe auditors stub. One of the series of figures represents cents,another dimes, another dollars, and another excess charges.

Projecting from the back side ofthe severing-blade 8 are otherperforating devices intended to make such perforations in thevoucher-slip X as will indicate lthe date of the issuanceoftheslip.Theseperforating-points are also formed of flat spring metal and bent,as shown at Fig. 5, so as to form points 26, frictional clampingportions 27 setting around the back edge of blade 8 and projections 28by which they can be slid. The points are preferably bent double belowthe blade, as shown, to give a rm hold against accidental springing off.The checks are printed with the years at 29, the months at 30, and thedays of the month at 31, and the points are moved opposite the printedcharacters at which the perforations are desired, precisely as in thecase of the points 19. The perforations enable the auditor when the slipcomes back to him to verify the returns of the conductor who issued itto the passenger.

It will be noticed that instead of using on the voucher-slip separatefigures for each day, as is customary, I employ altogether only fourteenfigures. Of these the group 0, 1, 2, 3 are intended to represent thetens or the absence of tens in the number of the day, and the othergroup, consisting of a cipher and the nine digits, indicate either theabsence of units or the number of units in the number of the day. Aperforator is employed with each group of figures, so that one may bepositioned for perforating the tens and the other the units. If thecheck shown in Fig. 1 were perforated by the points as there positioned,the 28th day of the month would be indicated. If it were desired toindicate the 8th day, the perforator employed for the tens would bemoved so as to perforate at O and the other remain as shown, or if theday were the 20th the lower perforator would be moved so as to perforateat 0,7 the other remaining at the place shown. By this feature I greatlyeconomize the amount of room needed on the slip. I also prefer toperforate the check adjacent to and directly opposite each of thedate-indicating characters, as seen at 32. These perforations are of alength slightly exceeding the width of the bases ofthe puncturing-points26, and, as will be noticed, they are arranged close under the base ofthe points, so that the severations made by the points will extend tothe perforations 32 and so that the triangular severed portions of thepaper under the points will be entirely detached and free to drop out,and thus form indicating-openings 33, Fig. 2, in the slip X. Twoinstances of these openings 33 are shown at Fig. 2, because it can bestbe illustrated there; but, as a matter of fact, these holes are not madein the slips until they are placed in the holder and issu ed by theconductor.

The severing devices 1.9 and the severing devices 26 are entirelyindependent of each other and can be moved past each other on the blade.This is important, as the latter need adjustment only at the beginningof the days business, while the others require to be changed generallywith the issuance of each check.

It will be noticed that the ends of the springs are inserted intransverse slots in the blade, and the ends ofthe springs are thusenabled to move in the slots when the blade is raised or lowered in theways in the box ends without causing binding against said ways; also,that the interiors of both ends of the box are cut away on one side ofthe blade, as plainly shown, so that there is no contact by thoseportions of the ends with the checks except at the outer corners. Inthis manner I prevent the checks from catching on the ends of the boxwhen raised preparatory to being severed by the blade and obviate manyaccidental tearings which would otherwise occur.

I claim- 1. rIhe combination With a box or holder, of the severing-bladeand detachable springs for holding the blade down on the checks, saidsprings being bent double and having one point resting on the blade andthe other secured to the box and being also attached to the box bybuttons upon which they swing and from which they may be detached by anendwise movement, substantially as specified.

2. The combination with the box and the severing-blade of U-shapedsprings one at each end of the blade, each spring having one end bent soit may pass through and be detachably secured to the blade, and theother end bent so it may be detachably entered in an opening in the box,substantially as specified.

3.v The combination in a check-holder, ot' a severing-blade and a devicebelow the blade IIO for severing the figures from the check or stub,said device being movable along the blade and formed of spring metal,and held to the blade by its own friction, substantially as specified.

4. The combination with the blade 8 of independent movable severingdevices below the blade, said devices being made of flat springi metalbent around and frictionally bearing on the blade, and also adapted tobe detached by springing the metal, substantially as specified. i

5. The combination with the slotted blade 8 of independent movablesevering devices below the blade, said devices being made of springmetal bent upward through the bladeslot and creating friction with thesides thereof, substantially as specified.

6. The combination with the slotted blade of movable severing devicesmade of iiat spring metal having projections formed thereon whereby theymay be moved, and also having portions bent around the blade andfrictionally engaging the same, substantially as specied.

7. The combination in a holder or box, of a single severing-blade andcharacter-severing devices on both sides of said blade, those on oneside being entirely independent of those on the other side,substantially as specified.

8. The holder or box provided with a series of movable character-cutters19 for severing the figures indicating the amount paid by the passenger,and another series of movable character-cutters 26, independent ofcutters 19, for severing the figures and words indieating the date, bothof said series of cutters being mounted on the same supporting device,substantially as specified.

9. The combination in a holder or box, of a single severing-bladeprovided on one side with adjustable character-severing devices and onthe other side with other adjustable character-severing devicesindependent of and movable past the iirst--mentioned devices,substantially as specified.

10. The combination in a holder of a blade for severing the check intotwo parts X and Y, and character-severing devices adjustable on saidblade and located part on one side of the line along which the check issevered by the blade and part on the back side of the blade and awayfrom said line, all said character-severing devices being independentlyadjustable, substantially as specified.

ll. The box having the interior surface of its end members cut out orrecessed essentially as shown so as to avoid contact with the ends ofthe checks, whereby danger of tearing the checks from their outer edgesis obviated, substantially as specified.

ALEXANDER D. J OSLIN.

Witnesses:

H. M. MUNDAY, EDW. S. EVARTS.-

